Macaws meet their LEGO counterparts at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo

Keepers hoped that the 2m-high sculpture, which is part of The Great Brick Safari, an exhibition of LEGO brick creatures at the UK’s largest Zoo, passed the real birds’ inspection with flying colours, ahead of its launch on Saturday.

Plastic parrots - Polina and Pearl, a Scarlet macaw and a Blue-and-gold macaw which took two experts 66 hours to create - came face-to-face with real-life male Scarlet macaw, Inca, and female Military macaw, Bolivia, who regularly fly in the Zoo’s Birds of the World demonstration.

Zookeeper Leigh-Ann Batchelor said: “Macaws like Inca and Bolivia are highly intelligent and curious birds, so it was fascinating to see them investigate their incredibly realistic, LEGO brick twins!

“Inca is such a warm and approachable parrot, he wanted to make friends with Polina and Pearl, but Bolivia is much cheekier, so I’m not sure what she made of them - perhaps she thought they were being lazy for refusing to budge from their perch!”

The Great Brick Safari at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, lets visitors encounter realistic LEGO brick beasts, including one tonne elephant, Earl Grey, which took six experts 1,600 hours to create from 271,739 LEGO bricks.

There will also be a kids’ Activity Trail, Pop-up Safari Tours and Brick Pits.

The Great Brick Safari at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo runs from Saturday, until Sunday, June 2, and is included in the price of a zoo ticket.